Conventionally, in optical communications using an optical transmission member such as an optical fiber, an optical waveguide, and/or the like, an optical module including a light-emitting element (hereinafter, also referred to as “optical element”) such as a surface-emitting laser (e.g., a vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL)) has been used. Such an optical module includes an optical receptacle (hereinafter, also referred to as “optical socket”) that allows, to enter the optical transmission member, light containing communication information and being emitted by the light-emitting element (see, e.g., Patent Literature (hereinafter referred to as “PTL”) 1).
An optical module disclosed in PTL 1 includes a transparent substrate, an optical socket that is disposed on one surface of the transparent substrate and that is for optically coupling together an optical element and an end surface of an optical transmission member, and the optical element disposed on the other surface of the transparent substrate at a position corresponding to the optical socket. The optical socket and the optical element are adhered directly to the transparent substrate. An optical plug provided at one end of the optical transmission member is attached to the optical socket. In the optical module disclosed in PTL 1, the light-emitting surface of the optical element faces the transparent substrate, so that inconvenience such as damage to the light-emitting surface, adhesion of an extraneous matter to the light-emitting surface, and/or the like can be reduced.